Office of the Registrar

Registrar

Interior Design

Associate of Applied Science Degree

The Interior Design program has been developed to prepare students with a wide variety of skills and competencies for entry into various areas of the design field, ranging from residential to commercial design. Gallatin College maintains a high level of expertise in our faculty drawing from those in the industry to provide current, relevant education for our students. After graduating and working in the field for over three years, students may be eligible to sit for the NCIDQ Exam, a national exam designed to demonstrate competency on a national level. Graduates of the Interior Design program find careers in all facets of design.

Description

Interior designers will draft, sketch, and use computer-aided-drafting (CAD) to design non-load bearing interior construction. Function and aesthetics are important in completing the furnishings, lighting, and finishes with a client’s tastes in mind. Projects may include designing a room in a private residence, planning for renovation and expansion, and coordinating the interior arrangement of a large building complex.

Areas of expertise include space planning, kitchen and bath design, helping clients select fixtures and furnishings, supervising the coordination of colors and materials, obtaining estimates within the project budget, and overseeing the execution of the project.

Job opportunities

Interior designers are qualified to work in a range of different settings, including independent consulting, design firms, architecture firms, kitchen and bath design, retail and window display, home builders, flooring and furnishing retailers, lighting stores, and many others.

Interior design is one of the design fields subject to government regulation because designed spaces must conform to laws and building codes, including accessibility standards for the disabled and elderly. According to the American Society for Interior Designers, 29 states require interior designers to be licensed or registered.

Graduates are Prepared to:

Understand the theory and history of design and apply design principles and elements to their projects.

Communicate in the language of interior design using listening, verbal, and written skills to interact with clients.

Communicate graphically according to current architectural standards using both hand-drafting and AutoCAD techniques.

Demonstrate research abilities and critical thinking in space planning, selection of finish materials, and application of codes for residential and commercial projects.

Increase their body of knowledge in a wide variety of areas including construction and finish materials, color and lighting technologies, NKBA guidelines, residential and commercial codes, sustainability, and professional practice.

Employ creative skills to create client presentations using hand- and AutoCAD drafting, rendering, and professional sample boards and finish schedules.

Many students need preliminary math and writing courses before enrolling in the program requirements. These courses may increase the total number of program credits. Students should review their math and English placement before planning out their full program schedules.